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USDA focused on Farm Bill must-haves
The head of the USDA Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service tells Brownfield the USDA’s stance on the next farm bill is something they want farmers and ranchers to be assured of. Acting Under Secretary Michael Scuse says the three farm bill principles laid out earlier this week by US Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack are: maintaining a strong safety net, supporting ag research and conservation and promoting vibrant markets at home and abroad.
Scuse says the ag department understands the uncertainty that exists across the country, “There is a great deal of uncertainty in the agricultural community. Everyone knows what the deficit is and the issues with the deficit in the past few months and what could happen in the coming months to get the deficit under control.”
Scuse says they want to reassure farmers and ranchers that the Ag Department is providing Congress with the information it needs to craft a new farm bill, “We believe that a Farm Bill can be crafted and, again, take care of these three very important areas for farmers and ranchers.”
But along with the Super Committee’s involvement, this is a farm bill year like no other. Scuse says the process of getting to a 2012 farm bill will “undoubtedly be very interesting.”
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